On view
William R. Elfers Gallery
The Beach at Trouville,
1865
With the advent of railroad lines reaching the northern coast of France in the late 1840s, larger numbers of people could enjoy seaside vacations. Boudin depicted vacationers in street clothes near two bathing machines, horse-drawn cabanas on wheels invented in England in the eighteenth century to preserve modesty. After a swimmer changed from street clothes into a bathing suit inside the cabana, the horse would pull the machine into the surf, where the swimmer could descend into water deep enough that they would not be seen in their swimsuit.
This windy scene reveals Boudin’s fascination not only with changing social mores but also with capturing the transient effects of light and weather on the landscape—interests he imparted to his mentee, Claude Monet.
Information
1865
France, Normandie, Trouville (sur-Mer)
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